I think it's more popular with the younger generations of people, regardless of males or females, IMHO.

Sorry to read that Mr. THISBobDole.

I didn’t know you ride. :thumb:
I wear a full helmet religiously since an accident in ’96 and it has saved me since then.
I had a little get off in ’00 where I slid, tumbled and a golf ball sized rock split my helmet when I bounced off the top of it. Had I not been wearing my helmet I’d probably post even more gibberish than I currently do. ;)

I was watching the qualifying for the 500 GP bikes at Hockenheimring in Germany, a track famous for it’s long straights where bikes even back in 1990 were running past 200 MPH, when Eddie Lawson pulled into the pits to change tires. Exiting the pits leads to one of the longest straights and Eddie quickly got his Yamaha up to speed, but when he sat up and grabbed the brakes for the first turn it revealed that someone had made a mistake replacing the front wheel and the brake pads literally fell out of the calipers. He headed off track in excess in excess of 190 MPH without brakes. I thought for sure he was dead, he slid forever after laying the bike down, but he raced the next day having suffered only minor bruises and scrapes.
The proper safety gear will save your life.

I, too, am a believer in helmets. All those years of riding bicycles made me realize how important protecting your head really is. Now that I'm on a motorcycle in traffic, it is a definite must.

Not sure how one comes to the conclusion that having a helmet would make you a vegetable. I would think a helmet would keep you from being a veg. Or did I misinterpret pr_capone's post?

Very sorry for the loss of you fellow bikers.

Defensive driving mode is on 100 percent when you drive with idiots on the road.

My best to you.

I think you read it right, that’s kind of an old justification for not wearing a helmet that I’ve been hearing since I was a kid hanging out with my parents and their “biker” friends back in the ‘70’s.

I don't know what article you are referring to, but how do you know he would have still suffered a broken neck if was wearing a helmet?

I'm an avid cyclist, as in road bicycle.

I assume he's talking about the subset of accidents where a helmet makes the difference between instant death (without a helmet) and severe brain damage (with a helmet). In that case, I'd personally prefer instant death. But of course that leaves out all the other accidents where the helmet makes the difference between death/severe damage (without a helmet) and minor injury or none at all (with a helmet).

Honestly, I've never personally seen an accident where a helmet would have saved the guy's life. But I also don't want to be the guy whose family is being told "If he was wearing a helmet, you'd be talking to him now". So I always wear a helmet.

I got driven into a median about 8 months ago by a jackass that didn't check mirrors, didn't flip a blinker, just came and came quickly (and kept going). I was right at his A-pillar with no shoulder so there was nowhere to go but down.

But/for the helmet I was wearing, I'd have been the drooling mess you are referring to. Hell, a simple bump helmet probably wouldn't have done any good, the impact was right at the temple and cracked the damn thing. It was a Shoei, so I didn't even get a headache (just some MFing wicked road rash and a very torn groin)

The #s don't lie, but to each their own.


Bob,

Sorry as hell to hear about your week, man. And what concerns me is that they are NOT going to get any better. This will go from a hobby to a survival sport in the next 15 years, I fear.

The cages get dumber daily. Just this season alone I've had to take it onto the shoulder twice when someone came over into my lane without looking. Fortunately the wreck I had last fall prepared me for it, I can recognize the assholes before they do it for the most part.

But people are going to get more distracted, not less. As more of the 'tweens' that have grown up in constant communication end up with drivers licenses, you're only going to have more idiots to avoid and they'll be worse than ever. Living in a college town is doubly dangerous for me because I know have the HS kids from that generation driving around town with the same general attention span.

I'm considering selling mine myself. The constant stream of ****wits is making it less and less fun for me out there. I've only been at it for 5 years or so, so it's not the lifestyle change it would be for you and I understand that, but this just hardly seems worth it anymore.

Good luck, man. Hope things head up for you soon.

In many cases, the helmet is the cause of a broken neck. How the hell would something on top of your head keep your spine from snapping from the impact?

You can still die even with the proper safety gear but Jason Britton on Superbikes had a good point.
He was giving hints to a couple of young “stuntaz” when he pointed at the one without a helmet or any leather and said, “You need to gear up. The difference between you and him” pointing to another young “stuntah” that had a helmet and leather, “is if you go down you’re going to be nursing road rash for a week. If he goes down, he can straighten whatever is bent and be back up and riding that day.”

why will someone will buy a leather jacket for a few hundred bucks and not wear a helmet? why buy and wear gloves, chaps, boots, whatever. because they don't want to see their hands or legs look like something from a horror movie, but they won't protect their head. makes no sense

my state is not a helmet state and you don't see very many people wearing them. i talk to a lot of riders and the base issue is, in my opinion almost always, that people don't think helmets look cool. when you peel away all the layers of rationalization that's all there is. you can justify anything to yourself that you want to. they identify or want people to identify them with the biker persona and they don't think helmets fit the template. you're 'supposed' to be wearing a bandana or nothing. that is what i see anyway.


my condolences to the friends of the person lost in this wreck. i think that as cars become more like living rooms, as they lock out more sound from the outside and have more distracting 'features', things have gotten a lot more dangerous.

Well, in this specific case, the helmet wasn't the cause of his broken neck. My condolences to you for your loss, but it seems clear that more injuries can be prevented by wearing a helmet than not.

The wind on your face can feel pretty good, until that wind is carrying a big grasshopper, or horsefly, or bumblebee. Never mind those freak’n cicadas. Catch one of those in the middle of your face and you’ll never again question wearing a helmet.

i was hit by something on what would have been my eye/forehead area once that snapped my head back. i didn't get a good look at what it was, maybe a bolt or a rock or something. i would have at least had fractures and lost that eye, in my opinion, and that is only if i had managed to stay upright. i doubt that the get-off at 65mph would have gone well either. you are talking about weeks in the hospital if you make it there, medical expenses, permanent disfigurement... but since i was protected i just kept on going.

Unfortunately, life for bikers has changed. Motorists have way to many distractions these days. JMO, we can either accept that, or turn in to hamburger meat. I no longer drive the CA freeways like I used to. I am now ALL about defence. Not as fun, but still much more fuel efficient.

To each his own brother... I would never hold your opinions on this issue against you. :D

No, you read it right.

I don't want to live a life where my body is mangled beyond repair but my head is fine so I live the rest of my 50 years or so in either extreme constant pain or worse... unable to care for myself. I simply won't put my wife through that.

Basically yeah... read above :D

THIS

Acceptance of that fact ≠ wearing a helmet though. Being aware of your surroundings and keeping your bike in good condition will do more for an experienced rider than the false sense of security that a helmet provides.

I'm not knocking helmets or those who wear them... its simply a choice.

:thumb: Same here, not knocking anyone that chooses not to wear a helmet, just that I personally feel nekid without one.

Oh, BTW....100.